Tuila'epa confirmed that the learning method known as 'Study Technology' was being trialled in six schools as a means to curb the decline in literacy, especially in primary schools. Read more

There are now only 35 refugee children on Nauru, with more expected to leave in the coming days.

Fifty minors have arrived in Australia since October 15 - partly as a result of Australian Federal Court orders - and the government has signalled a desire to "quietly" get all children off the island by Christmas. Continue reading

Abdul Aziz Muhamat fled persecution in Sudan only to be detained by Australia in Papua New Guinea, where he became a spokesperson for hundreds of men held there for five years. Continue reading

The figures were quoted in the church's newsletter, The Proclaimer, in the main article titled "Pre-election homily reflection on economic justice."

"My sincere apologies, my statistics on poverty and VAT was based on Warden Narsey's study on Poverty in 2008 and therefore it is out of date," said Archbishop Peter Loy Chong on Facebook.

"VAT was reduced to 9 percent in 2016 and poverty according to United Stations Development Programme 2014 has declined, but remains a concern."

An article published in the Fiji Sun Online on October 12 says the Archbishop's statement contained "wildly inaccurate information."

And, "While an apology has since been issued, the record must be fully corrected."

Making use of information provided by the Office of the Attorney General, the writer states:

• Poverty is declining in Fiji
• The gap between the rich and the disadvantaged is decreasing
• Fiji's human development status is at a record high

The Attorney-General and Minister for Economy, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, said: "It is unfortunate that the archbishop has chosen to make comments in perhaps areas that are not his expertise, using outdated figures."

The household income and expenditure survey, Sayed-Khaiyum said, was the only authoritative source that measured poverty statistics in Fiji which was available from 2013-2014.

Rural poverty in Fiji, he said, had decreased by 43 percent in 2008 to 2009 and 36.7 percent in 2013 to 2014.

Sayed-Khaiyum said urban poverty had also decreased by 28 percent in 2002 to 2003 and 19.8 percent in 2013 to 2014.

He said claims that tax reforms were benefitting the wealthy in Fiji were false.

Source

• fijisun.com.fj
• fijisun.com.fj
• fijitimes.com
• facebook.com
• Image: facebook.com

The report says:

• Traditional village councils and the church have been complicit in maintaining the veil of silence on the issue
• The church is generally failing in its role to prevent family violence
• The church is reinforcing the patriarchal framework which underpins family violence
• Church contributions are spiralling out of control through competitiveness, and a failure of churches to control amounts, leading to undue financial pressures, which in turn trigger a greater prevalence of domestic violence

The National Council of Churches' general secretary, Reverend Ma'auga Motu, says the criticisms were unjustified as church ministers play a big part in addressing issues relating to domestic violence.

"How insulting are the findings of this report, we have been working with the Ministry of Women to conduct consultations in the villages, through the church ministers."

"It is disheartening to read about the hard work of church ministers being degraded by this report."

The setting up of a Family Violence Prevention Office is the lead recommendation, out of 39, made in a report.

Recommendations directed at the churches include:

• Churches increasing their capacity to deal with domestic violence
• Preventing placement of victims in situations that risk further harm
• The need to consult and establish a national guideline for church ministers when dealing with victims and perpetrators of family violence
• Traditional village councils and churches providing backup for a government-led strategy

Source

• sobserver.ws
• radionz.co.nz
• Image: radionz.co.nz

General Secretary of the National Council of Churches, Reverend Maauga Motu, told the Weekend Observer they remain neutral.

"This is a sensitive matter so we will not comment on it as it will only do harm than good," he said.

"The church will do what they want and the government will do what they want as it is allowed under the law."

Repeated emails sent to the CCCS's General Secretary, Reverend Vavatau Taufao, on what actions the church will take to deal with the Government's latest move, have not been answered.

The Minister for Revenue, Tialavea Tionisio Hunt says the seizure of funds is permitted under the Income Tax Act.

Prime Minister Tuilaepa Dr Sa'ilele Malielegaoi agrees. He said the government does have the power under the law to take money and assets from anyone who owes taxes.

In an opinion piece in the Samoa Observer, Mata'afa Keni Lesa has accused the Samoan government of hypocrisy.

"Minister Tialavea insists that Government's decision is about doing 'what is right.' Fair enough," he said.

"Why then has the Government not done anything to collect an outstanding debt of $87.6 million identified in the Public Account Management Audit report for the 2014-2015 financial years?

"How did this debt come about? Who in Samoa and what companies are responsible for it? If the principles of accountability and transparency were applied, would the Ministry of Revenue have been left with such a massive debt?

"And why haven't Tuilaepa, Tialavea and their boys applied the law to recover this debt?"

Source

• sobserver.ws
• sobserver.ws
• Image: samoaplanet.com

MSF said it was informed on Friday 5 October by the Government of Nauru that it was no longer required and terminated its provision of mental health care services on the island.

They were given 24 hours to leave the country.

MSF says that all of its international staff have now left the island where they had been working since November 2017.

Barri Phatarfod, the founder and president of Australian organisation Doctors for Refugees, told the ABC's Pacific Beat program she was stunned by the Nauruan Government's move.

"It's incredibly dangerous and it's grossly irresponsible," she said.

"Nowhere in medicine do you ever see 24 hours to stop, [there is] no basis to have suddenly stopped midway through.

"The explanation is that mental health support is no longer required.

"It's clearly required; self-harm syndrome, life-threatening psychiatric disorders."

Psychiatrist Beth O'Connor, who had been stationed by MSF on Nauru for 11 months, said the refugees would find it difficult to receive the critical health care they needed.

Court-ordered medical evacuations of refugees from Nauru would be hampered by MSF's removal, she said.

"The process of both children and adults with mental and physical illnesses being transferred off Nauru is complicated," O'Connor said.

"There is a lack of independent opinions and that is problematic."

It has been speculated that the MSF practice of giving patients access to their files, some of which have become public, was the trigger for the Government's decision to evict the organisation.

MSF had provided its refugee patients with their medical records which had been used in court applications for evacuation, but O'Connor said MSF had no control over what patients did with their records.

Source

• abc.net.au
• radionz.co.nz
• Image: abc.net.au

The referendum - tentatively scheduled for next June - will mark the end of a 20-year peace process that followed the end of the Bougainville civil war in the 1990s.

The people of Bougainville will be asked whether they want the national parliament to agree to either greater autonomy or full independence. Continue reading

The Minister for Revenue, Tialavea Tionisio Hunt, said his ministry estimated more than 250 ministers of the church owed $US2500 each in unpaid tax for the first six months of the year.

"As of last week, we have given all the banks a list of names of the church ministers whose personal accounts will be affected by this seizure," said Tialavea.

He said if the ministers don't have any money, the government will seize their cars and lands, whatever assets they own, which have a market value.

"We will take and again, this is done under the authority of the law."

Tialavea said the law was passed in January 2018 and all the church denominations complied, except the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa (CCCS).

"Well, the law applies to everyone. The law does not wait until it is accepted or not.

"We have given church ministers six months and those who continue to defy the law will face the consequences."

Workers making up to $US5900 dollars or 15,000 talas do not pay tax under reforms announced late last year.

Church ministers are included in this exemption.

But "Unless you file your taxes, we cannot determine which one makes less than the threshold," the revenue minister said.

"However, once the church ministers have filed their taxes and it's less, we will refund them."

The chairman of the Samoan Bankers Association, Tu'u'u Amaramo Sialaoa, said the banks are caught in the middle between the Ministry of Revenue and the customers.

"However, the law is the law and obviously we need to comply with the law," he said.

Source

• sobserver.ws
• radionz.co.nz
• radionz.co.nz
• Image: samoaobserver.ws

Rev. Lazarus, general secretary of the Lahu Baptist Convention in Kyaing Tong, eastern Shan State, said that about 100 Wa Christians were released recently after signing a pledge to pray only privately.

However, he said 92 ethnic-Lahu Christians were still held by the United Wa State Army (UWSA).

Myanmar's largest non-state army has upped its persecution of Christians, detaining pastors and destroying churches in areas bordering China and Thailand in Shan state, a new report has revealed.

Last month the Asia Times reported that UWSA recently released a six-point statement instructing all of its military officers and administrators to "find out what the [Christian] missionaries are doing and what are their intentions."

The Chinese language statement vowed to punish any local administration cadres who support missionary activities, bans the construction of new Christian churches, and requires that priests and workers in existing churches must be local, not foreign.

In September, Rev. Soe Naing, a Catholic, said he had heard that the UWSA has called and questioned clergy about whether they are doing development work or persuading people to convert to Christianity.

"If an individual or an organization builds a church in any area, they investigate to see whether it is being built because it is in a Christian community or whether it is being built to proselytise to get people to convert to Christianity," he said.

The United Wa State Army (UWSA), a 30,000-strong ethnic armed group comprising the military wing of the United Wa State Party (UWSP), has set up a self-proclaimed autonomous area bordering China and Thailand in Shan state.

Source

• ucanews.com
• reliefweb.int
• Image: atimes.com

The Vatican press reported that this sum is intended to be "an immediate expression of the feeling of spiritual closeness and fatherly encouragement from the Holy Father towards the people and territories affected and will be shared, in collaboration with the Apostolic Nunciature, among the areas most affected by the catastrophe."

The Dicastery's contribution to the disaster relief is part of the aid that is being activated throughout the Catholic Church.

In addition to various Episcopal Conferences, it involves numerous charitable organisations.

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and Malteser International were among Catholic aid agencies sending emergency response teams to Indonesia.

The local CRS team is working closely with its Caritas partner and additional teams have been deployed from around the world to assist with pipeline logistics, temporary shelter and relief supplies.

CRS is supporting Caritas staff and volunteers to respond to people's most urgent needs with temporary shelter materials like tarps, blankets and sleeping mats, as well as sanitation kits, clean-up and other supplies.

"Because of the many injured survivors, the healthcare facilities need to be put back into service as soon as possible," says Nicole Müller, Mission Director of Malteser International in Indonesia.

"Therefore, we will equip the centres with medical equipment and medicines."

In addition, Malteser International is providing emergency funds to allow relief supplies to be distributed to surrounding communities.

Help has also come from the Catholic church in Korea and in Italy

Source

• press.vatican.va
• malteser-international.org
• crs.org
• Image: arabianbusiness.com

The archbishop of Suva says he does not intend to inform Catholics who they should vote for or vote against.

In a posting on the Archdiocese of Suva's Facebook page, Archbishop Peter Loy Chong said the Church's role is to help Catholics form their consciences (mind) in accordance with God's truth.

He said that during the month of October, they will use the Sunday Homilies to help people form their conscience and practise their political responsibility.

The Archbishop reminded people that Catholic social teaching teaches that "A fundamental moral measure of any economy is how the poor and vulnerable are faring."

He noted that poverty remains a significant concern in Fiji, despite the overall level of development and the moderately high average incomes.

Trends indicate that the national incidence of poverty declined from 35% in 2002-2003 to 31% in 2008-2009.

But the reduction in poverty was uneven—urban areas saw a reduction from 28% to 19%, while poverty in rural areas increased from 40% in 2002-2003 to 43% in 2008-2009.

Chong also noted that, in 2006, Fiji introduced a regressive taxation system that makes the poor poorer and the rich richer.

"The current economic trend shows an increase in poverty and how the taxation system will make the poor poorer and the rich richer," he said.

"As Catholics, we are called to work for greater economic justice in the face of persistent poverty and growing income-gaps."

On the Archdiocese's Facebook page Chong provides an ethical framework for economic life as principles for reflection, criteria for judgment, directions for action and criteria for election.

He concluded by noting: "All of economic life should recognize the fact that we all are God's children and members of one human family, called to exercise a clear priority for poor."

Source

• facebook.com
• Image: facebook.com

RFMF's chief of staff for coordination, Captain Eronia Duaibe, said that Australia's bid was successful because they took a holistic approach to Black Rock's construction, rather than the "bits and pieces" tabled by China.

This comes at a time when Fiji's position between Australia and China within the Pacific is becoming more and more contested.

Increasing Chinese activity within the region as a result of China's Belt Road Initiative (BRI) has prompted Australia's re-engagement within the Pacific.

After the last coup, prime minister Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama adopted a stance that looked past both Australia and New Zealand and towards China.

This was partly because China did not criticise Fiji's domestic political situation, whereas Australia was particularly critical about a return to democracy within Fiji.

Some argue that China's BRI presents a sovereign risk to the Pacific islands, with only Australia's re-engagement within the area a way to turn the tide against Chinese influence.

The redevelopment at Black Rock will result in the camp being transformed into a regional hub for police and peacekeeping training and pre-deployment preparation.

The prime ministers of Australia and Fiji made the announcement in August in a joint media statement.

According to the statement, the Australian support will ensure the Black Rock facility will deliver enhanced capability development and stronger interoperability between the Australian Defence Force and the Republic of Fiji Military Forces.

The Black Rock base is believed to be poised as the centre for Canberra's proposed Australian Pacific Security College.

Source

• lowyinstitute.org
• fijitimes.com
• Image: The Jet Newspaper

Clement said he had been informed by Father Johanis Salaki from the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Palu that there are reports of at least two churches damaged.

"Their walls are cracked. In some cases, heavy steel pillars have become detached from their brackets," he said.

He also reported that a number of priests suffered minor injuries in the earthquake.

Clement reported that at least 500 priests, nuns, seminarians and lay catholics have been forced to relocate to the compound of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish since the disaster.

A big number of teens attending a Bible camp are confirmed among the dead. "They are Catholic and Protestant students who were on a retreat in the location," said Albert Podung, a church worker who lives in Palu.

They were at the Pusdiklat GPID Patmos 'Jono Oge,' a church training centre in Sigi, located outside the provincial capital of Palu.

Officials say that another 52 young people are still missing from the camp. They expect the death toll at the Jono Oge to climb further as recovery continues.

The centre is affiliated with Palu's largest denomination, the Indonesian Protestant Church in Donggala (GPID), with around 40,000 members.

Source

• ucanews.com
• bangkokpost.com
• christianitytoday.com
• abcnews.go.com
• chvnradio.com
• ncronline.org
• Image: rollercoaster.ie

Yenni Suryani said with the airport damaged, getting access to Palu and Donggala is a huge problem. Responders and local aid groups have drive overland 10-12 hours.

That means a bottleneck for relief supplies in coming days. Landslides are hindering road travel in some places, she said.

"There's very limited electricity in Palu but power is out almost everywhere. Some mobile phone towers have been repaired allowing limited communication, but it's unreliable."

Sunyani said she was worried about people who might have been washed away.

Indonesia's Vice-President Jusuf Kalla has pointed out that when the Indian Ocean tsunami struck in 2004, the death toll recorded that night in Aceh, on the northern tip of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, was around 40 people.

The eventual body count in Aceh exceeded 130,000.

The island of Sulawesi has been divided, at times bloodily, between Muslim and Christian populations.

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, there was widespread communal violence in and around Poso, a port city not far from Palu that is mostly Christian.

More than 1,000 people were killed and tens of thousands dislocated from their homes as Christian and Muslim gangs battled on the streets, using machetes, bows and arrows and other crude weapons.

Source

• crs.org
• newstalkzb.co.nz
• wral.com
• nytimes.com
• wyomingpublicmedia.org
• Image: timescolonist.com (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

The way in which the funding is carried out is now under review.

The government will not comment on how the funding is to be allocated this year and it could be facing a fight with the Catholic Church hierarchy on the issue.

For the past decade, government funding of between US$1.5 million and US$2 million each year were disbursed to the nation's two dioceses, with millions more made available to parishes and religious orders for specific projects.

But now, the Catholic prime minister, Taur Matan Ruak, elected in May, plans to use the concordat signed with the Vatican in 2015 as a basis to change the way government funding is allocated.

"My government will no longer give funding to the parish churches because we have allocated a specific budget for the church," Taur Matan Ruak told parliament.

"The church should resolve its own problems."

Up until now US$15 million a year has been guaranteed by the government.

In 2017, US$6 million went directly to the church, with the government retaining US$9 million that was supposed to be for the funding of church building projects.

This year the government has so far committed only US$5 million to be transferred to the bishops' conference.

This agreement was signed in the dying days of the previous government of Mari Alkatiri, despite a budget for the year not having been passed.

But the money has yet to be transferred because of the change of government.

Joaquin Freitas, head of the (CSSF) said he had been told the government may transfer only US$3 million.

The CSSF is an office within the prime minister's department.

There is confusion as to who is responsible for allocating the funds. Up until now, responsibility has been shared by the elected officials, the church and the CSSF.

Father Crispin Julio Belo, a spokesman for the bishops' conference, said that the 2018 total funding of US$15 million should be transferred directly into the bishops' conference account.

However, the government would not comment on how it plans to split the money.

Source

• international.la-croix.com
• Image: otimorleste.com

• Caritas Internationalis in Rome has launched an appeal to help finance relief operations for thousands of families affected by the typhoon.
• The US bishops' Catholic Relief Services is on the ground providing assistance for families by distributing food and shelter, potable water and hygiene kits.
• The Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD) in England and Wales has initially pledged about US$39,000 to help Caritas Philippines scale up its emergency response.

The typhoon, known locally as Ompong, was the strongest recorded anywhere in the world in 2018.

According to the Philippines government, nearly 600,000 people have been affected by Typhoon Mangkhut.

Almost 250,000 people have sought refuge in evacuation centres or with host families.

In the Northern Luzon region, houses have been destroyed and many acres of crops and farmland have been devastated.

The UN estimates that the typhoon has wiped out $265 million of crops, one month before harvest is due. This is going to have a massive impact on the food supply across the whole of the Philippines.

Caritas assessment teams reported that there is an urgent need for food in coastal and interior areas.

"There are a lot of things we need right now, particularly food, canned goods, clothes, blankets," said Father Peter Rambac, parish priest of Roxas town in the northern province of Isabela.

Rambac said that in his parish alone, 90 percent of the crops have been damaged.

"We need your help in Benguet, especially for families and individuals at evacuation centres," said Father Manuel Flores, social action coordinator of Baguio Diocese.

Source

• ucanews.com
• caritas.org
• crs.org
• cafod.org.uk
• Image: abc.net.au